what is WRONG with my SCALE!!

I know I know. Don't rush it, You didn't get this fat in a few months. muscle weighs more than fat. Different times of the day/ month/ female cycle/ polar vortex/ makes you weigh more/ retain water/ b*tchy beyond belief. I have thought of all of these and they are all true...BUT!!!

I have been doing an hour (at least) of step aerobics every day. EVERY day. I started watching what I am eating- not being obsessive about it, just making better choices. I am eating low carb, lots of veggies, no late night snacks, no junk food at all.

I have lost inches (which does make me soooooo happy) and I am almost 2 sizes smaller than I was when I started. I feel great! I have more energy. I like to see the difference in the mirror.

SO! Why have I not lost a single pound in the last 6 weeks? How is that possible?? I have lost 2 1/2 inches around my belly, 2 around my thighs. why is the scale not showing me at least a little results? I went from no excercise and eating (a lot!) of bad foods to this new life style.

sorry everyone. I am just a bit upset today. any advice would be great. Thanks

Replies

  • whollybologna
    whollybologna Posts: 87 Member
    your body is converting fat to muscle which is less dense (smaller but still weighs the same). eventually the fat will start to burn off and the scale will start to show your amazing progress.

    keep doing what you're doing! non scale victories are as important as scale ones if not more so. you can do it!
  • AlMonkey
    AlMonkey Posts: 258 Member
    I think losing inches is better than the number on the scale going down, because not only YOU get to see them. When you lose numbers on the scale, thats usually pretty private unless you're inviting your family, friends etc to look at the number, but when you lose inches, that loss is on display for you and EVERYONE else to look at, all the time.
  • kbmnurse
    kbmnurse Posts: 2,484 Member
    Stay off the scale!
  • Stay away from the scale!are you feeling better,you said you are wearing smaller size.that's what counts????keep up the great work.
  • Dustin710
    Dustin710 Posts: 8 Member
    your body is converting fat to muscle which is less dense (smaller but still weighs the same). eventually the fat will start to burn off and the scale will start to show your amazing progress.

    keep doing what you're doing! non scale victories are as important as scale ones if not more so. you can do it!

    In no molecular way has fat(1) ever been converted to muscle(2). These have two absolutely different physiological compositions. That's like saying if you try hard enough you convert your bananas into turkey sandwiches.

    Also, muscle fibers are more dense than adipose tissue (1 and 2).



    (1) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2515528/
    (2) http://faculty.stcc.edu/AandP/AP/AP1pages/Units5to9/Unit7/muscle.htm
  • SGM_Adonis
    SGM_Adonis Posts: 1,565 Member
    a666b1a1b2b6430283b12ad0a7392a37.jpg
  • LeanButNotMean44
    LeanButNotMean44 Posts: 852 Member
    your body is converting fat to muscle which is less dense (smaller but still weighs the same). eventually the fat will start to burn off and the scale will start to show your amazing progress.

    keep doing what you're doing! non scale victories are as important as scale ones if not more so. you can do it!

    In no molecular way has fat(1) ever been converted to muscle(2). These have two absolutely different physiological compositions. That's like saying if you try hard enough you convert your bananas into turkey sandwiches.

    Also, muscle fibers are more dense than adipose tissue (1 and 2).



    (1) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2515528/
    (2) http://faculty.stcc.edu/AandP/AP/AP1pages/Units5to9/Unit7/muscle.htm

    QFT

    If you are losing inches and clothing sizes, screw what the scale says!
  • xiamjackie
    xiamjackie Posts: 611 Member
    If you are losing inches, who cares what the scale says? A number shouldn't define you! I have people guess my weight all the time because it's actually higher than you would think, because I lost inches, not pounds.
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
    I started watching what I am eating- not being obsessive about it, just making better choices. I am eating low carb, lots of veggies, no late night snacks, no junk food at all.

    Are you tracking your calories and staying within your goal? If not, that's probably what's going wrong.
  • QuietBloom
    QuietBloom Posts: 5,413 Member
    your body is converting fat to muscle which is less dense (smaller but still weighs the same). eventually the fat will start to burn off and the scale will start to show your amazing progress.

    keep doing what you're doing! non scale victories are as important as scale ones if not more so. you can do it!

    No. If OP is in a true deficit, little if any muscle is being built.
  • bren998
    bren998 Posts: 92 Member
    Hello,

    I am in the same boat as you; however, it has been a lot longer than six weeks for me since the scale has moved.:frown: I walk 4-5x a week plus strength training. I tried increasing/ decreasing my calories still nothing. I can tell that I have lost a lot of inches from pictures and by the way my clothes fit. I am down a size in jeans:happy: I feel a lot better than I did two years ago, so I am just going to keep walking. Slow & steady wins the race, so stay with it.
  • whollybologna
    whollybologna Posts: 87 Member
    rephrase:
    your body is burning fat and building muscle mass, therefore replacing fat with muscle which is denser.

    better?
  • OMG! I just snorted and almost choked on my salad! that was funny. Thanks for that. (I mean the pic that says scales don't measure sexy!)

    To everyone else, thank you so much.
    Just having one of those days. I stay off my #&^%$@ scale and only get on it about 2-4 weeks. I have been feeling so good I was expecting some kind of change. I think you guys are right. Put the *!&#* scale away and watch my calories. I am tracking them here but I am often over by a little and usually not under by much. Thanks so much for helping me in a weak moment. It truly sucks because my birthday is this weekend and I got myself all worked up about it.

    ok, no more pity party for me. On to the next!!
  • LTKeegan
    LTKeegan Posts: 354 Member
    If the OP is on a small deficit and getting sufficient protein, they can build muscle at a rate of about 0.5lbs per week. Unless they already have between 5-10% body fat (as a male) or around 12-15% body fat as a female.